Candlelight

Candlelight isn't a long game but it kept me entranced throughout the entire playthrough. It's a fantastic example of a simple idea executed very well, with extra effort spent in ensuring the player will have a good time. This isn't a game which you will get excited about - but in some ways it's even better than that. This is a game that you can get comfortable with, that will help you relax, and will make you look at platformers in a new way.

Rod Moye has created a decent platformer with Candlelight. Though it can be challenging, it remains accessible, but there are some issues that prevent Candlelight from being a truly magnificent game. Platformers need to establish their fundamental rules quite early on and not keep adding things right until the final moments, which Candlelight is guilty of. As a solo effort, Candlelight is a fantastic achievement and kudos must be given for that.

Candlelight is a lot of great and fun ideas that feel more disjointed than cohesive. Rather than teach the player or provide a challenge, it throws things at you as if to say “hey, check this cool thing out,” without utilizing that mechanic as a lesson to overcome future challenges, instead getting redundant by often falling back on very basic platforming in the later levels. A bit more thought out design could have made Candlelight shine its own candle as an indie gem, but as it stands, the enjoyment waxes and wanes as little more than a testament to a bunch of pretty cool ideas that the developer had.